Thousands to attend flagship Israeli homeland security, cyber conference
Alongside the keynote addresses and panels will be a large exhibition showcasing an extensive array of innovative technologies designed by 170 Israeli companies.
By EYTAN HALONUpdated: NOVEMBER 11, 2018 17:49 Exhibitors at the 2016 International Homeland Security & Cyber Conference at Expo Tel Aviv. (photo credit: SIVAN FARAG)
Five thousand people, 175 companies and representatives from more than 80 countries are set to attend a flagship homeland security and cyber defense conference starting Monday in Tel Aviv.The fifth biennial International Homeland Security & Cyber Conference will present Israeli know-how and technology that has propelled the country to the forefront of the world’s security industry, both on the ground and online.Among those due to address thousands of conference-goers at Expo Tel Aviv are Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency) head Nadav Argaman and Director-General of the Israel National Cyber Directorate Yigal Unna, as well as executives and government officials from countries, including the United States, Cyprus, Germany, India, Italy, Singapore, South Korea and Spain.US Transportation Security Administration Chief Information Officer Russell Roberts and New York Police Department Commissioner James P. O’Neill are set to provide attendees with an American perspective at the conference, which is backed by a range of government bodies, including the Israel Export Institute, the Economy Ministry and the Innovation Authority.Alongside the keynote addresses and panels will be a large exhibition showcasing an extensive array of innovative technologies designed by 170 Israeli companies in the fields of national security, intelligence, crowd protection, mass transit security, cybersecurity and financial tech.Adiv Baruch, chairman of the Israel Export Institute and the conference, told The Jerusalem Post that the conference represents one of the “main pillars” positioning Israel as a leader in the homeland and cybersecurity innovation fields.“Israel has become one of the leading hubs in homeland security and cybersecurity in the last few years,” Baruch said. “They are two different markets and solutions, but are all connected as they are supposed to provide a better, safer life for civilians in each country.”In addition to the exhibition space featuring Israeli innovation, the conference supports companies by arranging business-to-business meetings with visiting officials, including chief security officers and procurement managers. Some 2,500 meetings have already been arranged prior to the conference.“The conference brings the decision-makers to Israel rather than Israeli companies chasing the market and committing to additional expenditure. In a very condensed period of time, we are exposed to a large sum of decision-makers in that space,” Baruch added.Israeli companies operating in the fields of homeland and cybersecurity, he said, are expected to exceed $10 billion in exports this year for the first time.
“The conference materializes into contracts and revenue in large numbers for Israeli companies,” Baruch said. “We don’t have the means to follow each company, but feedback based on the will to participate every year and be part of it is only based on the positive productiveness of previous conferences.”
